Topeka KS Safe Routes to School Plan & Traffic Calming Lending Library How-to-Guide

What: An arrival and dismissal analysis at 14 elementary schools and how to create a traffic calming lending library
When: 2023
Team: BikeWalkKC, TOOLE Design
Client: Metropolitan Topeka Planning Organization (MTPO), Topeka Public Schools, City of Topeka KS
Funding: City of Topeka KS

BikeWalkKC partnered with TOOLE Design, the City of Topeka, the Topeka Metropolitan Planning Organization, and Topeka Public Schools to assess the built environments around 14 elementary schools in Topeka, Kansas. The goal of the project was simple: audit the streets within 1 ⁄ 2 mile of each elementary school and report on the conditions of sidewalks, curb ramps, crosswalks, and other pedestrian infrastructure.

We've worked with many schools and districts who are interested in better sidewalks and safer streets for their students, but school districts can only improve the land they own, which often means the sidewalk ends at the school's property line. We were optimistic about Topeka's interest in Safe Routes to School because the school district had support from the City and the Metropolitan Planning Organization. With broader power and resources available, there was a greater chance that the plan could stretch sidewalks beyond the school yard and into neighborhoods where students live!

The resulting Safe Routes to School plan included unique recommendations for each elementary school, as well as district-wide solutions, that highlighted infrastructure challenges and suggestions for improvements. Within a year, Topeka adopted the Safe Routes to School plan, which was an important first step towards implementation. Since the plan’s adoption, Topeka received over $50 million in Federal funding to construct new sidewalks citywide, many of which are located near the elementary schools included in this plan. 

In addition to the infrastructure recommendations, as part of this project, BikeWalkKC created a “Traffic Calming Lending Library How To Guide”. Many schools expressed interest in quick build projects, like colorful crosswalks and curb extensions, that could make the area immediately surrounding their campus safer for students. BikeWalkKC created this guide with the intent that the School District would create and maintain the library of traffic calming supplies, and individual schools could request them, as desired. 

Read the full plan here. Read a blog about this project here.